Fine Art

Ruth Chase
Biography

In 1965 I was born and raised in Venice Beach, CA to
Renee a seamstress and a short order cook and Eddie a
Merchant Marine. I was the last of five children but with
eighteen year separating me and my nearest sibling I
was raised as an only child. My upbringing was eclectic
and filled with variety. I remember living with a clear
acrylic bath tub thingy hanging from our living room
ceiling, filled with tadpoles and waiting for them to turn
to frogs and jump out of the house. VERY COOL. My
parents were very creative.

When I graduated from high school I spontaneously
applied to the best four art schools listed in a guide to
colleges at the local Venice library. In 1986 I was
accepted to the San Francisco Art Institute as a painting
student, with no prior painting experience. Somehow I
managed to get through four years of art education and
graduated with a Bachelor's degree in fine art in 1990.
What I learned in my years at SFAI was that my life is
my art and painting is a small expression of that puzzle.
All of my creating is in my living: people, experiences,
my thoughts, place and events in my life - most recently
with my daughter and husband. When I paint I am
making an object that represents these experiences. My
work is unpremeditated. I do not pre-sketch, plan or
stay with a visual aide (usually). The piece may take on
many transformations until I achieve the image that
feels right. I see my finished pieces as a shell that
encases my spirit caught in the moment of my life at the
time it was created.